Main image via Asian Scientist Magazine + om4.com.au
The year is 2019, the invention? Zoom-able contact lenses.
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A group of scientists from California have made a super impressive feat by creating robotic contact lenses!
As most “soft robots” need to be pre-programmed or controlled manually, this new invention is definitely one for the books as the researchers from the University of California San Diego have managed to mimic the natural electric signals in the human eyeball.
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According to the Independent, the researchers were able to harness the natural electric charge – which is active even if the eye is closed – to control the lens.
This is done by measuring the electrical potential of the eye – called the electro-oculographic signal; and then creating lenses that respond to that activity.
“Even if your eye cannot see anything, many people can still move their eyeball and generate this electro-oculographic signal,” said lead researcher, Shengqiang Cai to New Scientist.
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The contact lens is made from polymers that expand when the electric current is applied and is controlled using five electrodes that surround the eye which act like muscles.
The lens can be switched between “near vision mode” and “distance vision mode” aka zooming in and out; by the user blinking twice. The blinks will trigger a focal length change. The lens is able to move following the direction of the eye motion within each vision mode.
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As written in the researchers’ paper titled, A Biomimetic Soft Lens Controlled by Electro-Oculographic Signal:
“The four moving directions of the eyes could control the planar movements of the tunable lens and double blink of the eyes could trigger the focal length change of the lens.”
With this new technology, scientists hope that one day the study would be able to help create a prosthetic eye or a camera that can be controlled using the eyes alone (sounds like a Black Mirror episode waiting to happen…).
As someone who wears contact lenses, we sure feel like these would definitely help with those blur, far away objects. What do you think about these new zoom-able contact lenses? Would you get a pair?
Info via Unilad
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